If the area seems brighter and more colorful, part of the credit has to go to a third-generation farmer who has been selling flowering plants, shrubs and trees, as well as fruits, vegetables and other farm produce, for 30 years.

Cynthia G. Bertrand, co-owner and founder of The Farmer's Daughter garden center on Millbury Street, even brightened Gov. Deval L. Patrick's day on April 3, when she presented him with a bowl of pansies during a ceremony at the State House.

She was in Boston to celebrate Agriculture Day, an annual commemoration of Massachusetts' $490 million agriculture industry.

“It was amazing. The Massachusetts Farm Bureau organized it. We tried to educate our state senators and representatives on the importance of agriculture to the state's economy,” Ms. Bertrand said.

Hundreds of farmers, agriculture officials and state legislators gathered at the State House to celebrate those who supply dairy products, beef, flowers, honey, oysters, maple syrup, wine, vegetables, and fruits, from cranberries to apples and blueberries.

Ms. Bertrand, president of the Massachusetts Flower Growers Association, said, “I presented the governor with flowers. He is very supportive of agriculture.”

In a press release, Gov. Patrick said, “I am proud to support Massachusetts agriculture. The 7,500 farms across the commonwealth contribute in important ways to our economic activity, food security, education, environmental stewardship and open space.”

Ms. Bertrand is also on the board of directors for the Worcester County Farm Bureau and Massachusetts Agriculture in the Classroom, and is vice president of the Southern New England Simmental Association.

Simmental are beef cattle raised by farmers, including Ms. Bertrand and her father, Donald G. Post, co-owners of Hillcrest Farm in Auburn.

Part of the celebration in Boston was a “Taste of Massachusetts,” which included cranberry juice, apple pies, cheese, milk shakes and beef from Hillcrest Farm.

Fresh beef is also available at The Farmer's Daughter farm stand “with no pink slime,” Ms. Bertrand said. “Our beef is all-natural, born and raised the way beef should be.”

Also for sale are a wide variety of flowering annuals and perennials, and, new this year, indoor plants.

“So many people wanted house plants for their office, home or for a gift, that we added a new section,” she said. On display are colorful senetti, African violets, gloxinia, Gerber daisies, campanula and much more.

Outside, plants for sale vary from pink magnolia trees and colorful quince to evergreens and apple trees, as well as vegetable flats and a huge variety of bulbs, corms and flower plants, including new “Phantom” black petunias; a red and black petunia called “Vampire,” which should be popular with “Twilight” fans; heather, hyacinth and deer resistant Andromeda.

Ms. Bertrand said many flowering trees are blooming early due to the unusually warm weather this spring, but warned local gardeners not be fooled.

She said the Massachusetts Flower Growers Association has developed a “Plant Something” campaign to encourage local gardening, but warned, “Don't put out tender plants until mid-May.”

She invited children to come to a special Kids Club presentation at 10:30 a.m. on May 5 at The Farmer's Daughter, where kids can decorate and plant a flower pot in time for Mother's Day.

Gardeners of all ages are invited to an “edibles” seminar on vegetables, berries, fruits and herbs at 10:30 a.m. on May 19 in the hay barn at the farm.

Ms. Bertrand said Hillcrest Farm was established as a dairy farm by her grandparents, Adna and Grace Cutting, in 1933. Their daughter, Sylvia, and her husband, Donald Post, later established a beef cattle herd.

Then in 1982, while Ms. Bertrand was a college student, she joined the family business and opened a retail farm stand and garden center that today has 14 greenhouses and is known across New England for its fine plants, produce, Christmas trees and home-grown beef.

Ms. Bertrand said she named the farm center after her mother, Sylvia C. Post, “the original farmer's daughter.” Mrs. Post died in 2006, but her farming legacy lives on.

Ms. Bertrand said, “Massachusetts agriculture is a vital industry we hope people will support. Buy local!”

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